Minazuki

Minazuki : special uiro/rice cake for June 30th

Minazuki: the special rice cake sweet for Nagoshi no Harae (the old ritual)

The triangle-shape expresses a piece of ice. In the old lunar calendar June is the mid-summer. People could hardly get ice in the summer time, those days. In stead of ice, they had this sweets, ‘minazuki’ which looks like a piece of ice, asking for coolness.

The sweet red beans are used for the topping.
Those days Japanese people believed red beans protect us from evils such as diseases, disasters and so on.

Kisaragi : Feel the coming of Spring!

Camellia in the antique Tamba suribachi/pottery grinding bowl

Renkon-mushi: a Kyoto winter special; steamed lotus root dish
Also lotus roots can be prepared in several ways. 
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Happy New Year - 2011!

Very best wishes for a lovely rabbit year 2011!

Uzuki on New Year's 2011

Wishing you all peace, love and happiness in 2011.
iso zouni: New Year's soup a la Kyoto

Gindara(fish) no misozuke: grilled miso-pickled fish


simmer black soy beans for around 2 days

Fukiyose : Blown by the Autumn wind

Fukiyose chirashizushi

'Fukiyose' is an autumn view; leaves, nuts etc. blown and gathered in the autumn wind make beautiful scenes. I love this scenery!

This month's chirashizushi (scattered sushi) is Fukiyose chirashi.

Chirashi is a typical home-cooked style of sushi; mixed sushi-rice with cooked ingredients + topping with seasonal fish, vegetables, egg omelettes etc.. You can enjoy different and seasonal chirashizushi through the year.

In November, please make Fukiyose chirashi with autumn ingredients, like you paint the Kyoto autumn landscapes!

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Edamame-tofu

Edamame-tofu

Kigo (season word) is one of the important elements on classical Japanese poetry like waka or haiku. Edamame can be one of the best kigo for the summer poetry as we find and have the fresh one during the summer in Japan.

Edamame are young green soybeans still in their pod.
Its color is bright green and the flavor is light.

Boiled edamame perfectly compliment cold beer in summer in Japan.
It has become more and more popular in some other countries as well.

Edamame-tofu is a different type of tofu, made with edamame
and Kuzu(a kind of starch made from the Japanese Kuzu vine).
Edamame are high in protein and Kuzu stimulates good blood circulation.

Served with a cold broth sauce and a little wasabi, chilled edamame-tofu is wonderfully suited to summer!






















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Ingredients:
A Edamame-tofu
Edamame paste(boiled and strained edamame beans without the shell) 100ml
Kuzu(starch) 70ml
Water 450ml

B Dashi stock(konbu seaweeds & katsuo/bonito fish flakes)based broth sauce
Broth (any vegetable stock can be substituted) 100ml
Light type soysauce 25ml
Mirin(sweet rice wine) 25ml

A little grated wasabi and a few boiled edamame beans for the garnish

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Directions:
1. Put the edamame paste, Kuzu(starch)and water in a bowl and mix well
2. Strain 1. and put in a pan
3. Put 2. on medium-low heat and keep stirring fot around 20 minutes
to make a smooth paste
4. Place 3. in a close container and chill it in the fridge for 20 minutes
5. Put all the broth sauce ingredients(B) in a pan and warm them
6. Cool 5.
7. Put a small piece of 4. on a plate and pour cool broth sauce
8. Garnish a little wasabi and some pieces of boiled edamame

Kiku no Settuku : Month of Chrysanthemum

flower: hototogisu,kin-mizuhiki and chrysanthemum

In anticipation of Spring arrival